Have you seen a beautiful wedding dress and worried that you couldn’t wear a bra with it so decided not to even try it on? According to Mary Stephens of the Honeymoon Collection, the question is not “could you” but ‘how do you wear the bra?’ Here’s what to look out for to maximise your assets and minimise everything else!
Strapless bridal gowns are still a very popular style, and while the excellent construction of many of these dresses means that some brides opt to go braless for their wedding day, for others this simply is not an option.
Both larger and smaller busted brides often require underwear as a functional part of their shaping and it makes all the difference between looking “lovely” and looking “WOW!”
Bras for the larger bust
For the larger busted bride a bra gives necessary support and lift, which in turn helps to define the waist and make the body look longer. If you need a strapless bra, ensure it has been designed to be worn strapless, as opposed to a normal bra where the straps have simply been removed.
The best strapless bras usually have three sections to the cup; two lower cup sections give support and lift and a top section that is shaped so that it fits across the uplifted bust and minimises gaping.
A bra can help to define and accentuate the bust contours, and help to prevent the “mono-boob” look. Many bras with larger cup sizes have a central section which separates the bust and so gives a better shape.
Bras for the smaller bust
For a smaller bust a strapless dress can be wonderful. Add a padded bra to enhance your shape or have padding sewn into your bridal gown so you can choose to go braless on a hot summer’s day. For a sexy alternative, choose a push-up bra to give you cleavage and add matching knickers and suspenders, or a a pretty basque and you’ll feel as feminine as you look.
Beat the bulge
Sometimes a fitted strapless dress can create an overhang bulge just above the armpits. You won’t see this in any magazines, but a strapless dress has to fit snugly around the body, and often this creates a natural bulge. You can avoid this by wearing a well fitted bra and attach press studs to the bra and dress, so that they work together. The dress can then be slightly looser, the bulge disappears, and the bra does the work.
Bras for backless bridal gowns
Another popular style is the backless dress. A conventional bra is unlikely to work with this style but, if you need bra support, it’s worth trying a bra with an “Alterback” converter. It attaches to the bra straps, crosses over and then fastens at the front so that the bra straps are held low.
When shopping for your bridal bra, if you find that your usual bra size doesn’t give you the shape and lift that you want, don’t be afraid to try a smaller band size, or a smaller cup size. Experiment with different sizes until the bra does what you want it to do.
And finally, if you don’t need a bra at all, do think about investing in a pair of “petals” (also sometimes called ‘pasties’, though very unlike the Cornish type!) These cover the nipples, and should a typical British gust of wind blow when the photographer is taking those romantic pictures of you both, you’ll be safe in the knowledge that you won’t be “pointing” in all your photos!
Mary Stephens has been working in the British bridal industry for over 10 years, and in 2004 developed her very own niche range of bridal lingerie called the “Honeymoon Collection”, to satisfy the specific and unique demands of the brides. Mary is an experienced seamstress and bra fitter, giving her a sound understanding of dress construction and foundation garments.
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